I’m Learning to Celebrate the Small Victories

As I’ve mentioned in previous columns my shoulder is probably the most damaged joint in my body. When I was about 15, I dislocated it, broke my collarbone, tore my trapezius muscle, and damaged just about anything close to my shoulder joint. It’s been a long, painful road to even partial recovery from that awful injury. While I made good progress after my diagnosis with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS), my shoulder still causes problems.

I hadn’t been diagnosed when the injury happened, so my initial recovery with standard rehab procedure didn’t come close to what is required for a patient with EDS. Since my diagnosis 10 years ago, I’ve found ways to help with the healing process. The most helpful have been massage and Pilates, modalities that I refer to frequently in my columns.

As a rather impatient person, I used to get frustrated by the slow progress I was making. I reached a point where I gave up on the idea that my shoulder would ever improve or be usable and pain-free (or at least pain-manageable). I started to make progress in physical therapy after my EDS diagnosis, but I would get frustrated by the pain caused by the exercises. I had spent my life training as an athlete, and I found it infuriating when I couldn’t complete exercises or had to ask for less resistance.

My attitude and positivity have evolved significantly since my diagnosis, which undoubtedly has played a role in my willingness to try new methods for improvement. It’s why I agreed to try Pilates. What has amazed me, however, is that now I get excited about the small victories when it comes to my shoulder.

Last week during my Pilates session, my instructor had me doing an exercise that worked my shoulder. I couldn’t do it at first, so we decreased the resistance to the lowest spring setting and I was able to do three deliberate, shaky repetitions. 

There was a time when that would have made me angry. I would have been upset that I couldn’t do it with the original setting. But now I was ecstatic. At least I was able to do it. I’ve learned to embrace the small victories, especially when it comes to facilitating the repair and maintenance of a badly damaged joint and its surrounding support structures.

This week, I’m hoping that instead of three reps, I can do four. Bring it on!

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